Desert Building

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Section title

Desert Building

by WENXIAO MA

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CSA Research Report

Project Details Project Lead:

Lucy Alice Jones

Design Participants:

UCA MA Architecture Students,

Title:

Desert building

Type:

Collaborative build and public architectural installation

Location:

UCA Canterbury campus Kirk

Project Dates:

31 May - 23 August2018 show preparation 24 August 2018 - 31 August 2018 MA final show

Design Period:

31 May - 23 August2018

Budget:

ÂŁ310

Scale:

2m x2m x 2.4m

Support:

University For the Creative Arts

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Section title

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Fig.01 (previous page) Collage of the installation

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Research Agenda and Process Overview The research and design project to explore a series of natural changes in drought environment, and then is how designers design to improve and balance the relationship between human and drought, and part of the designer in the dry environment to create art, also brought the “dry” to make people experience the city environment. This from the sensory experience of space through the five senses, will deepen people impression of natural changes. In this project, I combined with the natural changes in the desert and architectural form. I want to bring a new understanding of drought, and express both because of natural or man-made reasons ，the building is slowly losing water and falling

Research Questions 1.

How to use the “senses” make people think to desert environment

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How to express the change of desertification process

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How to connect installation and user‘s action

Research Statement

Significance and Contribution Whenever and wherever the city is built by water, it is rich in water and prosperous. On the contrary, the river is dry and the city is in decline.

The “loss” of a city’s once unbreakable walls can destroy everything in time. This project demonstrates the city in the desertification process in the behavior of the audience. Loss of water “urban” began to die, in a new form of change. Through the construction of desert features of materials and lights, people can experience the space of drought and think about the impact of drought on our environment, make people thinking people‘s activities on the impact of drought.

Methodologies 1.

Inspired by the architecture in the Moroccan desert, model the “desert city” by sketch up, print the “desert city” by 3d print machine, and use vacuum compressor to make molds of different sizes.

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Tests of sand and water mixture ratio, using the mould from “desert city”

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Find ways to lose water

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Design Proposal The installation is housed inside a timber framed box，covered in plastic sheeting. Inside the box is a ‘desert building’ made from sand and water. Sand mixed with water under a certain proportion will be very strong. The accumulation of the desert castle in the middle of the installation The bottom of the whole space will be covered with a memory sponge. When people take off their shoes and enter the

interior of the space, they will feel the softness in the desert. This inspiration is from the physical memory I have experienced, which is also the part I want people to experience.

The drying out the castle should make people think about the relationship between nature and living environment.

Key technological outcomes of proposal 1.

What kind of equipment can be investigated for faster water loss

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Use a vacuum compressor or other ways for moulding the castle

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Build a closed and transparent space

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Proposal & Context

Design Research Context Field of Work

Work by others

Many artists particularly through “five senses”, let people to nature, to experience a phenomenon in nature, some of them by light and touch, etc. Is the experience into the experience space, through the special way of feeling, can stimulate and raw sensory memory of people?

Some designers focus on smell and touch experience through design. Their interaction with the audience is more memorable.

PSAD Synthetic Desert III is an idea in 1971, but he realized it until 2017.Wheeler‘s work can be said to reflect on consciousnes— on the subliminal awareness of distance, dimension, solitude, and time in the natural world.

PSAD Synthetic Desert III by Doug Wheeler The Weather Project by Olafur Eliasson Anthropodino by Ernesto Neto

Fig.02 Anthropodino,2009 (Ernesto Neto)

Fig.03 PSAD Synthetic Desert III , 2017 (Doug Wheeler)

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Design Methodologies My frame structure and transparent plastic fabric are combined. A fuzzy feeling is taken as the division between the experience space and the external space, and people inside and outside the device can have different viewing feelings. I chose sand as the main element of the whole design, first because it is related to the desert I want to express, and second, the process from wet sand to water loss after mixing with water conforms to the changing state I want to express.

Therefore, I will use sand to build sand buildings with features of Moroccan desert buildings, so how to make larger and stronger

sand buildings is my research direction. In order to enhance the atmosphere of the desert, I will use the technology of water removal to speed up water loss.

Critical Design Elements 1.

Use timber to build the outer frame part of the experience space

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Use sand as an element to create Moroccan desert buildings.

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Select materials to close the space

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Adjust and determine the height and quantity of light heat

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Process & Methods

Prototyping and testing a. Dehumidifier test First of all, in order to remove the moisture effect, I first tested the dehumidifier. The test results showed that it took 9 hours for the 12v dehumidifier to get the wet sand out of the picture. So I chose to use heat light instead

equipment was used to print the models again. However, as the size of the model was required by the vacuum compressor, I used the laser cutting machine to make architectural patterns.

When I applied wooden boards, the cubes formed by four wooden boards could suppress a larger size of sand buildings

b.Sand model I first used the 3D printing equipment to print out the sand dune model, and used the vacuum compressor to press the resulting plastic mold. Due to the need to make Moroccan desert style buildings, 3D printing

Fig.03 (left) Medium scale structural element assembly and stress testing

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Process & Methods

Fabrication Techniques a.Moulding Moulding is more delicate and requires consideration of the fact that the sand will not remain on the mold when it is detached from the model and the water resistance of the model will be tested. b.fixed The connection between Timber needs to be more solid, and more joints need to be made on the reinforcement of the mould.

18 Fig.08 Typical form proposal drawing

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Process & Methods

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Process & Methods

Control Systems a. wood frame

In order to make four pieces of wood fit firmly into a rectangular shape, I will use four pieces of wood to fix the bottom and middle positions respectively

In order to make the wooden frame structure more stable, I used two different brace types, corner brace and monotype brace, which will increase the d. wood frame & plastic sheet stability between wood and In order to connect the wood wood. structure to the plastic sheeting, at the top of the four corners, I b. Fixings will perforate the plastic sheeting Because of the thickness and and connect it with the wood material of the plastic cloth, after strips with a rope. In the middle the test, I chose to use the sewing and at the bottom, I’m going to machine to connect each piece stack the strips of wood and use of plastic cloth, first to each side, the nails to hold the plastic in after folding, and then stitched place. with thread c.sand model

Fig.09 (far left) Sorting and preparing of modules for assembly Fig.10 (left) Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit

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Occupation and Interaction This device is intended to “bring” people into the desert that I have experienced. In order to make the effect of heat light more obvious, I chose to put the device in a darker room, so I set them in the Kirk. the entire installation space is 2.4 meters high, and the “building” accumulated by sand and water is located in the middle of the device. The key response to this “desert building” is to want people to experience the soft and weathered “architecture” of the desert.

Review of Outcomes

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Review of Outcomes

Dissemination and Future Work This project mainly aims to enable people to experience the connection between nature and reality in the natural environment. I hope that I can continue to use different natural materials to connect modern social elements, and increase my understanding and experience of the surrounding natural environment and artificial environment.

Natural materials are more environmentally friendly, and plasticity is advocated in the design. It is hoped that more changes can be made in the study of materials.

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Materials and Suppliers List Timber（from Timberite，Canterbury） （T）46mm（W）46mm（L）2400mm，quantity：4 （T）46mm（W）46mm（L）2300mm，quantity：4 （T）46mm（W）46mm（L）1900mm，quantity：9 （T）46mm（W）46mm（L）930mm，quantity：9 3M×4M clear polythene sheet（from SCREWFIX 53×35inches Memory foam（from Ebay） 18mm MDF（from Timberite ，Canterbury） 3mm A1 Plywood（from UCA shop，Canterbury quantity：4 25kg Play Sand（from Amazon）quantity：6 Mild Steel Corner Brace（from B&Q，Canterbury）quantity：32 Wells Poultry 250w infrared Heat Lamp Bulb（from Amazon） Reptile vivarium clamp lamps （from Amazon）

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Credits MA Architecture Course Leader: Lucy Alice Jones MA Architecture Design Tutor: Lucy Alice Jones Owain Caruana-Davies Kim Trogal Anna Holder

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